Cultural policies and measures - Best practices

Strengthening cultural policy in Ukraine

On October 25–26, 2007, a policy seminar was held in Lviv, Ukraine, as a followup to the Ukrainian Cultural Policy Review. In a recent press release, the Council of Europe remarked that the seminar on the “Cultural Ecology of the Region” introduced 100 participants from international and regional organizations to the main themes of the policy review as well as innovative international practices and case studies of relevance to local and regional cultural activities.

According to the press release, “Robert Palmer, Director of Culture and Cultural and Natural Heritage of the Council of Europe, highlighted the critical issues facing the cultural sector in Ukraine, such as the need for a broader definition of culture, for participatory mechanisms to involve cultural operators and artists, and for a clear strategic focus to policy making. He encouraged stronger connections between Ukraine and broader European and international cultural networks and movements.”

The press release goes on to note that “the Deputy Minister of Culture of Ukraine, Tymphphiy Kokhan, welcomed the review and stated that the ministry intended to take action to address the main problems. In a regional context, greater efforts need to be made to link national cultural policy to municipal and regional authorities. The seminar in Lviv was an important step in this direction.”

For more information, the Council of Europe invites you to visit the website of Democracy Through Culture, the nongovernmental development center that hosted the event.